ESPN's live telecast of the second round of the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on Friday, April 11, earned a 1.8 U.S. household rating, averaging 2.5 million viewers, according to fast national data from Nielsen Media. The telecast aired from 3-7:30 p.m. ET.

The rating and viewership rose from the first day of the event, which earned a 1.5 rating and averaged 2 million viewers, but did not surpass ESPN's record-setting Friday from last year's event. In 2013, ESPN had its highest-rated and most-viewed Friday telecast since it began airing the Masters in 2008, averaging a 3.0 U.S. household rating and 4.2 million viewers.

Over the two days of Masters telecasts, ESPN averaged a 1.6 U.S. household rating and 2.2 million viewers, both down from last year's averages of a 2.5 rating and 3.5 million viewers.

"With its iconic nature and grand tradition, the Masters is one of the world's great and beloved sporting events and as recently as last year, our viewers have responded to the Masters in record numbers," said John Wildhack, ESPN executive vice president, production and programming. "While viewership was down this year, the Masters has a value to us that goes well beyond ratings."

SportsCenter and ESPN.com will continue to report from the Masters throughout the weekend.